Powerhouse Museum relocation a boon for Western Sydney

Western Sydney University welcomes the NSW Government's confirmation of the Parramatta CBD site for the Powerhouse Museum. 

The Museum will be moved to the banks of the Parramatta River, in an iconic purpose-built building, much larger than the current site in Ultimo. Construction is expected to begin in 2018 and completed in 2022.

The University's Vice-Chancellor Professor Barney Glover, says the move is a significant investment in the cultural and social infrastructure of Western Sydney – Australia's fastest growing region with a population of over two million people.

"Western Sydney University applauds the decision to transfer the Powerhouse Museum to a landmark site in the heart of the Parramatta CBD. This will be a truly world-class facility that will draw visitors from across Sydney, and indeed, from around the world," says Professor Glover.

"Just like the light rail network, that will link employment, business and residences in the area and drive western Sydney's economic development, the Powerhouse Museum is set to become a catalyst for the educational, technological, economic and cultural revitalisation of Parramatta, and Western Sydney more broadly."

Professor Glover says the new Museum's close proximity to the University's own high-rise CBD campus currently under construction in Parramatta – which will be home to 10,000 students and is due to open in 2017 – is also set to offer exciting opportunities for collaboration across teaching and research.

"The new purpose-built Museum will help drive the creation of more high-tech jobs for our knowledge economy," says Professor Glover.

Ends

11 April 2016

Amanda Whibley, Media and PR Manager